International Research Chemistry Awards

  Researchers from the Leibniz Institute on Aging - Fritz Lipmann Institute (FLI) in Jena, Germany, the Molecular Biotechnology Centre (MBC) in Turin and the University of Turin, Italy, have discovered a fundamental mechanism of aging in the gut. Over the course of life, a specific form of epigenetic aging - known as ACCA drift - accumulates in intestinal stem cells. This leads to the shutdown of key genes through hypermethylation . The drift spreads across the intestinal crypts and is caused by a combination of age-related inflammation, weakened Wnt signaling, and impaired iron metabolism, which affects the activity of DNA-modifying enzymes. The findings provide new explanations for why the risk of colorectal cancer increases with age and which molecular processes are involved. The human gut renews itself faster than any other tissue: every few days, new cells are created from specialized stem cells. However, as we get older, epigenetic changes build up in these stem cells. These ...

  Two new Cochrane reviews show strong and consistent evidence that HPV vaccines are effective in preventing cervical cancer and pre-cancerous changes, especially when given to young people before they are exposed to the virus. Girls vaccinated before the age of 16 were found to be 80% less likely to develop cervical cancer. The reviews also confirm that HPV vaccines are only likely to cause minor, transient side effects such as a sore arm. The reviews were supported by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). Human papillomavirus (HPV) is a family of common viruses, including the viruses that cause skin warts. Whilst many types of HPV are harmless, other 'high-risk' types can cause cancers of the cervix, anus, penis, vulva, vagina, and throat, and others cause anogenital warts. Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer in women worldwide and causes more than 300,000 deaths each year, mostly in low- and middle-income countries. The new reviews confirm...

  A new study of adolescents and young adults (AYAs) with seven common cancers reveals that nearly one in ten patients diagnosed with non-metastatic disease later develop metastatic recurrence - a condition associated with significantly worse survival outcomes. Metastasis is when cancer cells spread from the initial or primary site to other parts of the body. It comes with significantly worse survival outcomes. UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center scientists led the research. The findings highlight the urgent need to identify and address survivorship needs for young cancer survivors. "As treatments improve survival, young patients with cancer face unique challenges," said Ann Brunson, UC Davis research analyst and the study's lead author. "Our research deepens understanding of survivorship and the impact of metastatic recurrence, using statewide data to reveal trends and guide future studies." The research, based on data from more than 48,000 AYAs in California,...

  A team of researchers at IOCB Prague headed by Dr. Tomáš Slanina has developed a new method for labeling molecules with fluorescent dyes that surpasses existing approaches in both precision and stability. The new fluorescent label remains covalently bonded to its target molecule and does not fall apart even under demanding conditions inside living cells. This allows scientists to track labeled molecules over long periods with high reliability – an advantage for research in biology, chemistry, and medicine. The study was published in Angewandte Chemie International Edition. Fluorescent labeling of proteins and peptides enables scientists to determine where a molecule is located in a cell and how its behavior changes over time. Current methods, however, have clear limitations. The label often attaches to an unintended site on the molecule, potentially disrupting its structure and, in extreme cases, even its biological function. Moreover, molecules labeled in this way tend to be uns...

  Cancer-fighting antibody drugs are designed to penetrate tumor cells and release a lethal payload deep within, but too often they don't make it that far. A new study shows how this Trojan Horse strategy works better by exploiting calcium differences outside and inside cells. A research team led by Sophia Hober, professor at KTH Royal Institute of Technology, reported the development of a calcium activated delivery system they say could enable more precise treatment, with lower doses and less collateral damage to healthy tissue. In collaboration with Stanford University and Umeå University, the researchers reported their results in PNAS, the journal of the National Academy of Sciences. The concept takes aim at a common challenge with targeted drugs, which tend to cling too tightly to receptors expressed by tumors. On the positive side, that strong bond blocks receptors' tumor growth signals. But ADCs (Antibody–Drug Conjugates) are also meant to attack and kill, and too often t...

  University of Warwick researchers have built a new diamond-based magnetic field sensor that could be used to better find tumors through tracing magnetic fluid injected in the body. A cancer diagnosis is most problematic when cells from the tumor have metastasized (spread) to other organs. This most often occurs through the lymph nodes and the lymphatic draining system. Tests to find whether cancer cells are lodged in the lymph nodes are the gold standard for detecting metastasis and directing the course of treatment. Published in Physical Review Applied, Warwick researchers report they have built a new non-toxic and non-radioactive device that uses the unique properties of diamonds to diagnose metastasized breast cancer . This device is ultra-sensitive, handheld and works at long ranges, providing an upgraded solution to a regular challenge that cancer surgeons must cope with. First author Alex Newman, PhD student in the Physics Department at the University of Warwick commented: ...

  Summary A research team led by Professor Eijiro Miyako at the Graduate School of Advanced Science and Technology, Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (JAIST), has discovered that the marine bacterium Photobacterium angustum demonstrates remarkable therapeutic efficacy against colorectal cancer. Through screening of multiple marine bacterial strains, the researchers found that P. angustum, in its natural, non-engineered form, selectively accumulates in tumor tissues and induces both direct tumor lysis and robust immune activation. In mouse models, intravenously administered P. angustum showed high tumor tropism while exhibiting minimal colonization of vital organs except the liver, with no hematological abnormalities or histological toxicity observed. Furthermore, P. angustum therapy promoted intratumoral infiltration of immune cells including T cells, B cells, and neutrophils, and enhanced production of inflammatory cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α)...

  The emergence of cancer drug resistance remains one of the most pressing problems in cancer care and there is a critical need to devise approaches to mitigate it. However, the molecular mechanisms driving treatment resistance are poorly understood, hindering efforts to devise new treatment strategies which prevent resistance. Now, researchers at the University of California San Diego have found a paradoxical new way in which cancer cells survive and regrow after targeted therapy: by hijacking an enzyme that is typically only switched on during cell death. About one in six deaths worldwide are caused by cancer. Many of these deaths are ultimately attributable to acquired resistance following an initially positive treatment response. Cancer typically develops resistance to treatment through mutations over months to years, similar to how bacteria can evolve resistance to antibiotics over time. These mutations are difficult to treat with limited available drug combinations. However, ...

  Despite the success of immune checkpoint inhibitors in revolutionizing oncology, their benefits remain limited to a small fraction of patients. Many tumors develop resistance or evade immune detection through genetic and microenvironmental complexity. Neoantigens—unique proteins arising from cancer-specific mutations—have emerged as ideal targets for immune attack because they exist only on tumor cells. When these antigens are presented by dendritic cells (DCs), the body can mount a precise and powerful response against malignancies. However, challenges such as identifying the right neoantigens, optimizing vaccine delivery, and preventing immune escape remain significant. Due to these challenges, researchers are now focusing on DC vaccines that harness patient-specific neoantigens to achieve stronger and more sustained cancer immunity. A research team from the Chinese PLA General Hospital has published (DOI: 10.20892/j.issn.2095-3941.2025.0267) a comprehensive review in Cancer Bi...

  Researchers at the University of California San Diego School of Medicine have identified a promising new therapy for triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), which is among the most aggressive and difficult-to-treat forms of the disease. Their approach employs an antibody-drug conjugate - a delivery system that uses an antibody to identify cancer cells and deliver a highly potent chemotherapy directly into those cells without harming surrounding healthy tissue. Antibody-drug conjugates make it possible to use chemotherapy drugs that are too toxic to deliver on their own, offering a promising avenue for treating the most difficult cancers. In 2025, an estimated 316,950 women and 2,800 men will be diagnosed with invasive breast cancer. TNBC accounts for about 10-15% of all breast cancer cases, and it is widely considered the most difficult breast cancer subtype to treat. This is because TNBC tends to grow and spread more quickly than other forms of breast cancer, and it typically fail...

  Cells are regularly faced with environmental stresses that may damage or destroy them. To survive, they quickly adjust their gene expression to protect themselves. This is especially true for cancer cells, which must contend with a microenvironment that is inherently uncongenial. Yet they can thrive in these conditions, turning on genes that help them to develop into larger tumors or spread to other parts of the body. How cancer cells manage to turn a dire situation into an advantage has been unknown. Rockefeller researchers thought clues might lie in teasing out how the gene transcription machinery senses the stressful environment and then changes course. Now they've discovered a molecular switch in breast cancer cells that reprograms the genetic production line towards tumor growth and stress resistance. This finding, published in Nature Chemical Biology, presents a potential new target for cancer therapies. "We found that this molecular switch is mediated by a generic tr...

  Medical imaging foundation models are ushering in a new era for precision oncology. By integrating massive multimodal datasets and advanced AI algorithms, these models achieve unprecedented accuracy in early cancer screening, treatment planning, and prognosis prediction. Leveraging innovations such as self-supervised learning, transformer architectures, and contrastive learning, they enable deep integration of radiology, pathology, and genomics data. This shift from "single-task diagnosis" to "multi-dimensional intelligent analysis" represents a paradigm innovation, redefining how tumors are detected and managed, and paving the way for data-driven, personalized oncology care. Precision oncology demands accurate, individualized treatment strategies—yet clinical decision-making remains challenged by tumor heterogeneity, patient diversity, and limited data integration. Traditional AI models, trained for single diseases or tasks, struggle to generalize across cancer t...